KHS committee members clash over proposed plan

KENNEBUNK — The Kennebunk High School Building Committee met May 22 in what promised to be a short and sweet meeting, but turned into a long and contentious one.

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By Laura Dolce

seacoastonline.com

By Laura Dolce

Posted May. 29, 2014 at 2:00 AM

By Laura Dolce
Posted May. 29, 2014 at 2:00 AM

» Social News

KENNEBUNK — The Kennebunk High School Building Committee met May 22 in what promised to be a short and sweet meeting, but turned into a long and contentious one.

The main focus of debate was the direction that the current KHS plan — plan A1 — is going in, and the fact that certain members felt its "sprawl" was creating more problems by forcing athletic fields and the tennis courts to be moved.

Superintendent Andrew Dolloff briefed the committee on district sites where the courts could be relocated, including at Kennebunk Elementary or Sea Road schools.

Dolloff also said the district would be submitting its application to the state on June 11, asking to have a construction manager assigned for the renovating of the three schools, but that he was not very confident the application would be a success.

"We put our best foot forward," he said, adding that the state could choose to look at the schools as three separate projects. Dolloff also said that the earliest that the manager would likely be on board is in August — a month after the committees need to return with building plans to the Board of Directors.

He also let the committee know that the Consolidated Building Committee has "significant" questions on its $4 million budget.

Dolloff said Harriman architect Dan Cecil had to put aside work on the KHS plan, including an estimate for the newest iteration, because he had focused on Consolidated and Mildred L. Day schools.

While the committee was hoping to have solid numbers on what plan A1 would cost, member Daphne Pulsifer brought forward her own plan, one she said would not affect athletic fields.

Saying it had "almost too much space," Pulsifer's plan was more compact, keeping the theater at its current size and moving the wood shop and chorus rooms behind it.

"I know that Tim and Andrew and all the clever people will want to know what the numbers are," Pulsifer said, laughing. "I don't know.

While member Bruce Lewia expressed his frustration that Pulsifer's plan took the committee back to "square zero," Maureen King applauded it's more compact shape, saying that plan A1 "sprawls."

"I thought the point was to compact the building in some way," she said.

Committee member Tim Hussey said while Pulsifer's plan was creative, he felt the committee would be best served by moving ahead with plan A1, especially in light of the July deadline for presenting a plan to the Board of Directors.

"This is more work for Harriman and more time," he said, prompting King to respond, "Are we looking at what's best or what we have time for?"

Member Jack Reetz said he would prefer to explore plan 14C, last discussed nearly two years ago, which included an integrated performing arts center, a compacted building, properly-sized classrooms and a full athletic complex — most of which doesn't exist in plan A1.

"We've lost our vision," Reetz said.

Hussey said he "completely disagrees" that the current plan gave the committee nothing they were looking for and as for looking at new plans, "I'm not interested."

King said she was troubled the new plan would be putting new construction on top of old, and that saving money shouldn't be the only thing taken into account.

"No one ever told us $55 million for the high school is wrong," she said. "They told us they didn't like the performing arts center or the turf field."

King said plan 14C "has everything we ever wanted" and would be "something to be proud of."

The new plan, she said, was like a "bad shack with a blue tarp and bad tar paper on it."

King ultimately made a motion to ask Harriman to price out a right-sized plan 14C at today's prices. The motion passed 5-4.

Chairman Jason Gallant expressed his frustration with the amount of time it has taken Cecil to get the committee the cost estimates for plan A1, but noted that finding the right plan was paramount.

"Rushing through just to get a number to the public is a recipe for disaster," he said.

He said the committee would meet at 6 p.m. May 29 at KES — but only if Cecil was able to provide the figures for plan A1.